Unlit Desires
by bratmin
Summary: When two gods decide it will be fun to torture a certain son of Hades into a screaming, cowering mess in the corner, Jason loses it a little. {Warning; Implications of Rape} [Sorry for the messy first chapter, not sure why it did that. It's been fixed!]
1. Unlit Desires

Jason had come to the conclusion that there were too many gods. Later he would realize that it wasn't that there were too many gods, but too few jobs for the gods. Too many subdivisions of something that could have easily been done by one single god. Save everyone the hassle of having to remember.

On the way to Athens, they had a not so pleasant run in with two minor gods who Jason had never heard of before. They weren't too happy with being forgotten.

What did they expect? Jason was raised Roman.

It had started with an impromptu visit from an extremely exhausted Nico di Angelo.

He had shadow travelled back to them halfway through his trip to Camp Half-Blood with Reyna, Coach Hedge and a very large marble goddess. He'd left the other two to fend for themselves for a couple minutes so that he could deliver a warning. In retrospect, it likely would have gone a lot smoother if he hadn't shown up when he did.

Jason had just about jumped a foot in the air when Nico had materialized behind him, panting hard and looking like he was seconds from passing out cold.

"Jumping Jupiter, Nico," Jason muttered, hand clasped over his pounding heart when Nico laid a hand on his shoulder (for balance or to signify his arrival, Jason wasn't sure. With the state Nico was in, it could be either). "Don't scare me like that."

Hazel rushed over to hug her brother but stopped in front of him, as if she was afraid to touch him. He forced a painful looking smile and kissed her cheek softly.

"What are you doing here, Nico?" Hazel asked, putting her hands on Nico's arms to try and keep him from falling over. "I thought you were with Reyna."

Jason wasn't sure what Nico could possibly doing there. There was no way they'd already arrived at Camp Half-Blood. It had only been a couple days.

Nico gave Jason a strange, slightly pained look before speaking to the rest of the crew. Percy and Annabeth were bellow deck, sleeping. They'd spent most of the time sleeping—catching up on rest they'd lost during their time in Tartarus.

"I'm not staying," Nico said softly, leaning against Hazel slightly to try and steady himself. "I have to get back to them, they won't last much longer there alone. I have a message for you."

Jason had a stirring feeling that it wasn't Reyna and Hedge in trouble of not lasting long.

"Gaea's been recruiting gods," Nico continued. "Minor ones, no one too powerful, but she's sending them your way. We had a run in with Limos, god of hunger and starvation... not fun."

Jason's eyes quickly scanned Nico's body, taking in his appearance. Jason was so used to him being skinny and pale that he hadn't even noticed. Nico looked like he did when he'd come out of the jar—frail and malnourished, skinny as a rail and pale as a ghost.

"Nico," Jason started, frowning in concern. "Are you alright?"

Nico shook his head and closed his eyes for a moment. "I'll live," he said determinedly. "That's not the point. I heard Limos talking. Gaea is sending two gods at you. Two gods that... don't sound like they'd be very much fun to deal with alone—together they'll be ten times as powerful."

As if on cue, the water around them stilled; the air seemed to stop moving and suddenly Jason's eyelids got very heavy.

"I'm flattered," a voice said, snapping Jason back to his senses. He turned around, sword out. He was aware of the others at his back, making a small circle in the middle of the ship.

"Piper," Jason whispered. "Go wake Percy and Annabeth. Nico, get the hell out of here. You're in no condition to fight and the others need you."

Piper had already run off into the hold of the ship before Jason had even finished his sentence. Nico nodded and moved out of the small circle, towards the shadows cast by the mast. He didn't get far though.

The second before he stepped into the shadow, he dropped. His knees buckled under him and he collapsed in a heap on the floor.

Frank was the first to react. "Nico!" he cried, taking a step towards the prone boy on the floor. Before he could take another step however, someone stepped out from behind the mast. Everyone whipped around to see the new comer, weapons at the ready. Piper came running back on deck with Percy and Annabeth close behind. Annabeth gasped and grabbed Percy's arm when she saw Nico's body laying there with the tall man standing over him.

The god had long black hair that stopped just below his shoulders. His skin was as pale as ivory and his fingers were long—almost freakishly long. He wore nothing but a frail tunic, his bones jutting out, heavily pronounced under his translucent skin. He smiled, the movement drawing the skin over his sunken face, his eyes two huge beads of black, making them look like endless pits.

"I don't let my pray get away that easily," the man said, his voice like nails on a chalkboard. It was a different voice than the one that had spoken before, which set Jason's nerves even more on edge. The god knelt down beside Nico and slid his claw-like finger across his cheek. "Such a pretty boy. Such dark thoughts. My favourite."

He sounded so genuinely pleased that it made Jason's skin crawl. Piper came up beside him again, her newly acquired sword in her hand.

Jason felt the fresh, very real anger boiling inside of him. He felt personally threatened by this man's hands on Nico. Nico didn't like him much, but damn it if Jason wasn't trying. Every since their run in with Cupid (Eros, whatever) he'd been trying to break down Nico's walls. Nico desperately needed a friend and Jason wanted to be that friend. He would carry Nico's secret with him to his grave, if that's what Nico wanted.

"Get your hands off him," he hissed, eyes flashing dangerously.

"Touchy, this one."

Jason whirled, facing the other side of the ship. It was the voice who'd spoken before, and now it had a face. Jason glared at the man leaning against the bow but his expression faltered when he felt an unusual tug in his gut; a feeling he usually associated with when he and Piper were—okay that was weird. He blushed a little, confused at himself for the feelings he was having. He looked around at his friends and realized they all shared similar expressions. Who were these guys?

The newest arrival pushed himself off the bow and slowly walked towards them, tilting his head to the side and moving his hips in a way that made Jason squirm uncomfortably. He felt drawn to this man—he wanted to go up and touch him and the mere thought sent shivers down Jason's spine.

He was tall, not as tall as the man who was still kneeling over Nico's body (Jason kept flicking glances back at the two of them but he couldn't take his eyes off this new man for long) but he was taller than Jason, taller than Frank even. He had wavy blond hair which almost touched his shoulders. His sultry smile and bright blue eyes made Jason's legs turn to Jello. He ached to move closer to him but firmly held his ground. He saw Leo inching towards the god and grabbed his arm tightly, keeping him in place.

"Who are you?" Percy demanded, Riptide gleaming in the light of the setting sun.

The beautiful god chuckled softly, his laugh causing a small, undignified noise to slip past Jason's lips.

"My name is Pothos, Percy Jackson, god of sexual longing and desire. And this is my friend, Epiales, god of Nightmares."

Jason flushed with embarrassment. God of sexual longing and desire. Yup, that would explain a lot. He saw identical blushes on all of his friend's faces, which only made him blush darker.

"Epiales?" Annabeth squeaked over her embarrassment. "But... Phobetor is the god of Nightmares, isn't he?"

Epiales made a rather grotesque noise in the back of his throat and shot a glare at Annabeth, effectively shutting her up. "Phobetor, Phobetor, oh why can't you be more like your brother Phobetor? Gods, I hate hearing his name. No, little girl. I am the god of Nightmares. My halfwit brother is the spirit of Nightmares, who appears in the form of an animal or monster. I, however, am different. I enter people's minds, put them to sleep and trap them in a dream so vivid, so real, that it leaves them screaming within seconds. I bring their worst fears to life, child, I do not merely scare them for the fun of it."

Pothos made a small humming sound and walked towards his partner. Jason moved out of his way without even thinking about it, his body moving on it's own. He swallowed hard and tightened his grip on his sword. Don't loose your head, he thought, trying to stay focused.

Pothos knelt down beside Nico and stroked his hair before leaning down to kiss his cheek softly. Jason growled, but he wasn't sure if it was because the god had touched Nico that way or if it was the lingering need to be beside the god.

"Such a sweet child," Pothos cooed. "Kindhearted, loyal, loving... but troubled. So many dark thoughts."

Epiales chuckled and snapped his fingers. Nico instantly sat up, his eyes still closed and very obviously asleep. Jason heard Hazel inhale sharply beside him. He glanced down at her and saw her fighting back tears. He'd heard her story—of her encounter with Clytius, of how he'd used their friends as his mouth. The mere thought made him shiver.

Jason move forwards, to get them away from Nico, but Epiales turned his demon eyes on Jason and hissed. Jason was rooted to the spot. He was stuck. He could barely move an inch, even to look away.

"Sit back and watch the show, Jason," Pothos purred, wrapping his arms around Nico and hauling him to his feet. Nico stood there, eyes closed and body limp.

The look in Pothos' eyes terrified Jason. He knew that this was going to be one of the most traumatic battles they had to face. He could feel it in his bones.

"Let's induce a dream," Pothos breathed, pressing his lips to Nico's ear and blowing softly. Nico's lips twitched up at the corners slightly. He was having... a nice dream?

"A dream of the person he yearns for the most. A dream of what it feels like to have the one you crave pressed up against you." Pothos slid his hand down Nico's cheek as the son of Hades took a small breath, letting it out with a shudder and the slightest moan.

Jason definitely felt like he was interrupting something. His face felt hot but he couldn't look away. He knew exactly who Nico was thinking of and the mental image it gave him would likely haunt him for a few weeks. He shuddered. That was something he didn't need to think about his friends doing.

Pothos' face was sweet, kind and handsome. But something in his eyes set Jason's nerves on end. He was so focused on the god, so watchful of his behaviour that he couldn't take his eyes off of him. He was unaware of the others around him. They could have all disappeared in an instant and he wouldn't have noticed.

"Now let's see," Pothos hissed, his voice turned as icy as his gaze. "how such a beautiful dream can twist."

Epiales slid his fingers through Nico's hair and a full body shiver ran through the boy. His face contorted from one of happiness and pleasure to one of confusion. Something was happening in Nico's mind, and it wasn't good.

Epiales stepped back, melting slightly into the shadows cast by the mast. Pothos drew Jason's attention again, stepping in front of Nico and holding him around the waist. He pressed the smaller boy against his chest and slid his fingers slowly down Nico's neck. Nico started to whimper until the whimper turned into cries of pain. With every inch of his body that Pothos slid his finger across came another gasp, another muttered 'no'.

"What did you do to him?" Jason found his voice again, even though it cracked some at the end. He couldn't watch this. He felt his insides curling. He couldn't even imagine what was going on inside Nico's head.

Pothos started scratching him, digging his nails into the flesh of Nico's arms and dragging them down. Nico started to struggle, trying failingly to fight off the arms of the god. He had tears collecting in the corners of his eyes. Jason couldn't bare it any more. He closed his eyes and turned his head to the side, breaking away from the pitiful sight. When he opened his eyes again he saw the horrified faces of his friends.

"Stop."

Jason's eyes turned back to the scene in front of him. Nico had stopped fighting and was trembling violently in Pothos' arms, crying openly and whimpering softly. "P-please stop... Hurts."

Jason's gut gave a shuddering lurch and he fought back the urge to throw up. It was torture. He was witnessing this god torture Nico with the person he wanted most.

"Why?" Pothos' voice was sickly sweet, head tilting to the side and lips brushing over Nico's cheek. "Don't you want me? Don't you love me?"

Jason knew who's voice Nico could hear but all he heard was the poisonous voice of the lust god. Jason felt sick.

"I'm going to kill you," he hissed through his teeth, causing Pothos to look at him casually out of the corner of his eye. "I'm going to tear you to pieces, just you wait."

Pothos smiled. Jason shivered and closed his eyes.

"Why, Jason, that's not very nice," Pothos purred. "Why are you so angry, when it is you yourself who is letting this go on so long? It's you who can save him, you know. You were there. This precious child" -he stroked Nico's hair and Jason had to fight back a snarl- "had a meeting with my brother, Eros. You know who he truly desires, Jason, and only that person can wake him from this nightmare. It's up to you. Will you keep Nico's secret?" Pothos tilted his head to the side and grinned widely. "Or sign his death warrant?"

Jason started to physically shake with the restraint he was achieving. He would break free of whatever was holding him in place and he would tear the grinning god's blond head off.

Jason could feel his friend's eyes on him. He knew that they were casting confused glances his way. They had no idea the secret that Jason was holding for Nico. They had no idea what it would do to the boy if anyone found out.

"Can't decide?" Pothos asked, pouting mockingly. "Too bad. I guess I'll have to prove to you how little time you have." His hands moved and his long fingers wrapped around Nico's neck. The small boy let out a stifled gasp and gripped weakly to Pothos' wrists, his mouth open in a silent cry and his knees slowly buckling under him—but Pothos kept him standing with the grip around his neck.

"Nico!" Hazel cried from behind Jason, the tears steaming down her face from fear and frustration from the inability to move to save her brother. Jason cursed softly. He would have to say it. He didn't have time to think of a plan B. Nico was going to hate him.

"Oh for gods sake!" Annabeth cried. "It's me, I already know! Just let him go!"

Pothos laughed cruelly and tightened his grip on Nico's neck, a small whimper slipping past his lips before his fingers slipped from Pothos' wrists, falling limply at his sides.

"You have seconds, Jason Grace!" Pothos spoke loudly, his voice booming around the ship and his eyes flashing bright gold. "Make your choice!"

"Percy."

The name had slipped past his lips before he had realized he'd opened his mouth. He had tears clouding his vision and his muscles ached from him pushing against the invisible bonds holding him solid in place. "It's Percy he yearns for... Happy now?"

Jason couldn't look at Percy. He couldn't bring himself to see the confusion on his friend's face. He knew that he'd just broken whatever trust he'd gained from Nico. He knew he'd pushed his limits too far. But it was what he had to do. He wouldn't watch Nico die when he could do something to stop it.

"I..." he heard Percy stutter from beside him. "Me?"

Pothos laughed loudly and his grip around Nico's neck loosened. Before Nico could crumple to the ground, however, he wrapped his arms around the boy's waist and pulled him close, stroking his hair again.

Nico whimpered and cried softly and started to weakly fight again. Jason felt a rush of relief. He hadn't realized how terrified he'd been—how much he feared he'd been too late.

"Save him, Percy," Pothos whispered. "Come towards me and wake him from his dream. Hold him close and call his name. He will wake to your voice."

Jason heard alarm bells go off in his head. It was a trick. He knew it was. He didn't have time, however, to warn Percy before he spoke.

"I will save him," Percy said softly and Jason marvelled at how collected he seemed, under the circumstances. "Because he will wake up. He sees you as me, doesn't he? When you hold him and torture him, it's me he sees. I'm right, aren't I?"

To Percy's credit, his voice didn't break until the end.

"So Nico," Percy said, his voice barely a whisper. "I need you to do something for me. Listen closely... Kill me."

Pothos' eyes widened and he opened and closed his mouth a couple times in confusion. Jason had a feeling he hadn't seen this coming.

Percy puffed out his chest and squared his shoulders.

"Kill me!" he screamed.

And Nico did was he was told.

In the blink of an eye, the unconscious Nico drew his sword from his belt and drove it forwards into Pothos' stomach.

Pothos' mouth opened in shock and he froze as the gold ichor poured slowly from the wound. He backed up, the sword sliding from the wound and clattering on the deck when it slipped from Nico's fingers. Pothos hissed and clutched his stomach. He glared daggers at Percy.

"Epiales," Pothos seethed, reminding Jason that the other god was even there, quietly watching the show. "Finish these brats off."

With that he was gone in a quick flash of light, leaving behind only a sparkling shimmer in the air.

Instantly Jason felt his body freed from the restraints. He didn't know how Pothos had held them in place, but whatever it was was faded now. Before any of them could recover, however, Nico seemed to realize what he'd just done. But the catch was, he was still dreaming.

He held his hands out in front of them as if to look down at them but his eyes were still closed. He slowly started to hyperventilate until a long scream ripped from his throat.

Jason stuttered forwards a few steps and heard Percy swear beside him. Jason turned to look at him. He had a slightly green tint to his skin and he looked like he may be sick any second, his appearance echoing how Jason felt.

Percy had told Nico to kill him. And Nico believed he really had.

"Nico," Percy called, moving towards him quickly and taking him by the arms, shaking him a little to try and snap him out of it. "Nico wake up!"

Nico's eyes snapped open as he was commanded and he stared straight up at the man who until a couple seconds again, he believed was dead.

It didn't go well.

Nico screamed so loudly that Percy jumped back in surprise. The son of Hades stumbled backwards, screaming and shaking like a leaf. He only stopped backing up when he ran into the side of the ship. He stared straight at Percy, whimpering and crying.

Jason felt his heart shattering in his chest. It was so pathetic. Hazel took a step towards her brother but her legs were too weak and she clung to Frank instead. Percy was frozen in place, a look of shock and hurt and confusion on his face. Jason took a deep breath and stepped forwards.

He moved towards the trembling boy slowly, the way one would approach a wounded animal.

"Nico," he whispered, trying to draw Nico's attention away from Percy. He touched Nico's arm gently. "Nico, it's alright."

Slowly, very slowly, Nico's eyes turned away from Percy and he looked up at Jason. Their eyes locked for a second; two seconds, three. That was all it took for Nico to completely fall apart. He let out a heartbreaking sob and crumbled against Jason's chest, clinging to his shirt and trembling. Jason wrapped his arms around Nico's shaking frame and shushed him quietly. Nico started to sob, each sound was like a punch in the gut and Jason had to squeeze his eyes shut to stop himself from succumbing to the emotions.

"Well, I believe this is my cue to leave."

Jason looked over his shoulder at the god who was leaning against the mast, arms crossed and a lazy smirk on his cold looking face.

"I don't exactly know what Pothos thinks I can accomplish here alone. My talent lies with hurting those who are sleeping. And since none of you are weak as that one is, I do not have the ability to put you to sleep. So I believe I will bow out now. But don't worry. You'll see me again. In your dreams."

He grinned darkly and stepped back into the shadows, disappearing into the blackness as the sun set completely.

Jason took a deep, shuddering breath and looked down at Nico's small form still clutching at his shirt. He slid his fingers through Nico's hair and kissed the top of his head the way he would do to the younger boys at Camp when they woke from nightmares.

"It was just a dream," he whispered. "You're alright... Percy's alright."

Nico let out a soft whimper of relief and collapsed completely in Jason's arms. The son of Jupiter held his weight and lifted him into his arms, holding him close and carrying him down into the bunk without another word. He could hear the others following but he didn't pay them any mind. He stepped into his own room and gently lay Nico down on his bed. Hazel was at his side instantly, stroking his hair and whispering soft words of comfort, but Nico couldn't hear. He was already asleep, but it was peaceful this time.

Leo, Frank and Piper slipped from the room, leaving to go clean up some of the mess and get things running again.

"You knew?" Jason heard Percy ask softly from the doorway. "You knew about his feelings? And... and you didn't say anything?"

Jason turned slowly to look at the boy who he respected as much as he resented.

"Why would I tell you?" he asked, more venom in his voice than he meant.

Percy visibly flinched and Annabeth put a comforting hand on his shoulder, shooting Jason a glare. Jason ignored her and pressed on.

"You, the person who always treats him like he's a walking time bomb. You, the person who hurt him to the point where he ran away, cursed himself and called himself trash. No, Percy Jackson, I did not tell you. Not only was it not my secret to tell, but it was none of your fucking business. You're too busy being disgustingly happy with your perfect girlfriend to notice the way he looks at you when you're with her. You're so naive. Blind, even. I was blind before. I didn't see it but now that I know I can't believe how stupid I was before. He just wanted to be loved and cherished and he was cast aside. He felt betrayed. He doesn't feel like he's worth being loved. He honestly believed that the only person who ever truly loved him was his sister and she's dead! Not anymore... I will protect that boy until my dying breath because he's worth it."

Percy looked almost like he was about to cry. Annabeth's tears had broken forth already and Jason could feel the anger brewing tears of his own. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It wasn't fair to take this out on Percy. He couldn't help but be angry though. Nico deserved so much more than the cards he'd been dealt.

"Don't tell him you know," Jason said, opening his eyes again. "If he knows you're aware of it, any of you, he'll disappear forever... He's already told me he plans to once this is all over. I won't let that happen, but I know if he finds out you know he'll be gone before I can catch him and talk some sense into him. No matter how many times I tell him that he'll always be accepted with us, no matter what, he doesn't believe it. He comes from a time where he would be killed for ever thinking the way he does about another man, so... don't push your luck."

Jason turned back to Nico and saw Hazel crying softly into her hand. She was clinging to Nico's wrist with her free hand, as if she was afraid he would disappear in his sleep. Jason walked over to her and sat down on the edge of the bed to give her a one armed hug, rubbing his hand up and down her arm to soothe her.

"We're all in this together... we have to look after him because no one else will. I'll take care of him tonight and send him back to Reyna in the morning. Not a word to him. Any of you. Got it?"

Hazel nodded and sniffed before standing and mouthing a quick 'thank you'. She rushed from the room and Annabeth ran after her to provide more comfort. Jason's eyes locked with Percy's for a second. It was only a second but some kind of mutual understanding passed between them in that moment.

They would both protect him. He knew that Percy understood now. He couldn't understand how bad Percy must be feeling right now, but he knew it was intense enough to cause the tears to shimmer in his eyes.

"I'll take the first watch," Percy said, his voice thick with emotion. "Get some sleep."

He turned and left the room without another word. Jason looked down at the sleeping boy in his bed and sighed loudly. He gently brushed Nico's bangs from his eyes and lay down beside him, facing away from him.

"You owe me," he muttered softly before letting himself be pulled into an exhausted sleep.


	2. Levels in Love

Well... that was unexpected.

In retrospect, Percy probably should have seen it coming. Jason was right, he was blind. Everything seemed to make sense now—Nico's attitude towards him, towards Annabeth, the looks he kept giving the two of them. Percy had pushed him aside, told him to stay behind, treated him like a child. It was a miracle Nico didn't hate him.

Nico di Angelo, son of Hades, was an antisocial 14 year old with sister issues. He acted like he had no friends and the friends he might actually have, he pushed away. He hated talking about himself, his past or his feelings. He had a wall as high as the Empire State building completely circling his entire body and wouldn't let anyone through. He didn't like to be touched, talking to or questioned. And he was in love with Percy Jackson.

Well if that wasn't a slap in the face, Percy didn't know what was.

He sighed loudly and dropped his face into his hands, sitting down on the edge of his bed and biting his lip.

Jason had chewed Percy out pretty good and he felt properly chastised because of it. He hoped to the gods he hadn't completely traumatized the kid. Nico had looked worse mentally then when they'd gotten him out of the jar; after he'd been stuck in Tartarus. Percy knew first hand what that was like.

Percy could only guess what Pothos had made Nico see. He knew that he didn't actually want to know, however. The look on Nico's face was hard enough to deal with.

Percy looked towards the door of his cabin, wondering how Nico was doing. He was only across the hall, sleeping in Jason's room. Percy was still thoroughly confused about the two of them. What exactly had happened when he and Annabeth had been in Tartarus?

He groaned and fell back on his bed, rubbing his hands over his face and sighing loudly.

So Nico was gay. To be honest, he wasn't that surprised. Now that he thought about it, it kind of made sense. Nico had shown the signs.

Percy didn't have much personal experience with homosexuality, but he was from New York. It wasn't exactly new to him.

A couple of the kids at camp were gay, but it wasn't really that talked about. It was just sort of... a fact. He guessed it was because of the laid back attitude of the gods. They didn't really care who loved who as long as they got to mess with the relationship as much was they wanted. Percy took a moment to glare up at an imaginary Aphrodite which looked oddly like his ceiling.

So Nico loved him, huh? Again, not exactly that surprising. The rumour had been that he had a crush on Annabeth. It was what other people thought so he just went along with it, never really stopping to think about the fact that that was pretty damn obviously not true. Nico never looked at Annabeth without anything other than contempt or jealousy. There was longing too, Percy realized with a jolt, but it was always directed towards him, not Annabeth.

He groaned again and wiggled a little on the bed, not knowing what to do. Jason had forbade him from speaking about it to Nico. Percy wondered how Jason was going to explain everything to him.

So how exactly did Percy feel about Nico having feelings for him? Honestly, Percy had no idea.

It didn't disgust him, he knew that. He just didn't know what the feeling that was tugging at his gut was. Shame? Perhaps. Guilt? Well...

He felt guilty for hurting Nico, for scaring him. He felt guilty for putting him through everything he had and for not trusting him. He felt guilty for pushing Nico away and treating him like a child when he obviously had done much more growing than Percy gave him credit for.

Yes, that's what his feeling was. And it was eating Percy alive from the inside out.

There was a knock on his bedroom door and Percy sat up quickly, taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly to collect himself.

"It's open," he said softly, surprised at how hoarse his voice was.

The door opened slowly and Jason slipped inside, closing the door behind him and leaning against it. Percy locked eyes with him for a moment or two before looking away.

"How's he doing?" Percy asked quietly, running a hand through his hair.

Jason hummed softly and pushed off the door, moving to sit down on the edge of the bed beside Percy.

"He'll be fine. He woke up and I gave him an incredibly watered down version of what happened before sending him back to Reyna. I didn't really think he was ready to shadow travel yet but he seemed pretty eager to get out of here... poor kid."

Percy nodded slowly and clicked his tongue.

"So he... he's got no clue that I..."

Jason shook his head. "He doesn't know you know. Your or anyone else. As far as he's concerned, I'm the only person alive who's aware of it."

Percy frowned. "How did you find out, exactly?"

Jason laughed humourlessly. "On our little trip together to get the sceptre, we had a run in with Cupid." Jason grimaced when he said the name. "He pressured Nico into admitting it. He wanted him to 'accept himself'." Jason looked like he was ready to go looking for the love god and give him a piece of his mind. Percy was ready to join him.

"I promised not to tell anyone," Jason continued, "but I really do hope he accepts himself enough to maybe... come out. Hiding himself can't be good for him."

Percy chewed his lip and nodded.

"We'll look after him," he said and he didn't realize how serious he was until the words left his mouth. "I promised his sister I would look after him and I haven't been... that's why he's like this. It's time I step up and take responsibility for him." Percy looked at Jason and sighed. "We're the closest he'll ever get to brothers."

That was it. Percy would protect Nico with everything he had and he knew Jason would as well. Percy couldn't give Nico what he wanted, but he could sure as hell try and help him find happiness.

Jason's lips curled into a slight smile. "Damn straight, cousin." He clasped Percy on the shoulder and stood from the bed, stepping towards the door.

"Hey, Jason?" Percy called, causing the son of Jupiter to turn and raise a questioning eyebrow at Percy. "We're cool, right? You and me?"

Jason grinned and nodded. "Cool as a cucumber, bro."

He stepped out the door at the same time that Percy made a slightly disgusted noise.

"Ew, you're embarrassing," he muttered to the closing door and Jason's resounding laugh.


	3. Love is Lethal

The war was over. It was over. Gaea was still sleeping, her armies were dead. The statue of Athena was safely at Camp Half-Blood and the camps had made peace. They were free.

Nico leaned back against the side of his cabin, heaving a huge sigh and staring out over the camp. They were having a celebration of sorts. Everyone was there; all the legionaries from Camp Jupiter and the entirety of Camp Half-Blood. It was odd, seeing them all together, but satisfying.

Nico looked up when he heard someone say his name. He frowned, instantly suspicious, when Travis and Connor walked towards him-identical shit-eating grins on their faces.

"What do you want?" Nico asked, already annoyed by whatever they had planned.

The two laughed and looked at each other. "He hasn't even heard what we were going to say, Travis," Connor said, a mock pout on his lips.

"How very rude," Travis replied, huffing indignantly. Nico rolled his eyes.

"Anyways," Connor continued. "What we were going to say is that you look far too dreadful for such an occasion and we've come to change that."

He produced a cup from behind his back and held it out to Nico.

The son of Hades eyed the cup suspiciously, leaning down and giving it a sniff. He recoiled instantly, scowling. "That is alcohol," he said, giving the brothers a glare. They merely grinned and nodded.

"But of course. This is a celebration! Alcohol is customary."

Nico crossed his arms. "I'm 14."

Travis shrugged. "So? I was 12 when I got drunk the first time. So much more fun when you're younger." He sniffed and looked off into the distance as if he was remembering the good old days. "Also, it's much less embarrassing to get shitfaced for the first time when you're young. When you're older it just gets sad."

Connor held the cup closer, urging Nico to take it. Nico wasn't sold on the idea.

"I do hope there isn't anything sinister going on back here."

The brothers spun around so fast that the drink sloshed over the side of the cup. Nico peeked in between them and let a small smile curl at the corner of his mouth.

"Hi Reyna. Having fun?"

Nico had gotten close with Reyna during their journey to Camp Half-Blood. Fighting for each others lives made it easy for friendships to grow.

Reyna hummed and eyed the brothers suspiciously. "These two bothering you, Nico?"

Nico laughed shortly. "Most definitely."

Connor pouted dramatically but Nico noticed that he was still keeping a watchful eye on Reyna. "We just wanted to see Nico have a little fun. He's always so gloomy, it's depressing."

Reyna hummed, obviously not impressed. Nico laughed softly, turning his head away as the pretor started to lecture the two boys. He stared out over the camp, taking in the forms by the fire pit. He could make out the people he knew among them. He smirked when he saw Leo do something stupid to impress the pretty girl sitting next to him-the immortal Calypso, if he'd been informed correctly. Leo himself had been promised immortality if he could prove his worth to the gods. Yeah, because being one of the 7 children to save the entire world doesn't count. Nico rolled his eyes and moved his gaze to the other side of the first, his smile flickering and fading from his lips.

Annabeth sat on Percy's lap, her fingers in his hair and her forehead pressed to his. He was smiling-so happy, so in love. Nico felt sick.

"Connor, gimme that drink."

Reyna stopped her rant mid sentence as the three of them stared at the son of Hades in shock.

"Nico," Reyna said uncertainly, "is that a good idea?"

Nico chewed his lip and snatched the drink from Connor's hold. "Nope. Doing it anyways."

He put the cup to his lips and tilted it back, eyes closing as he grimaced and coughed. Well, that was disgusting. He took another sip. And chased that one with another.

Reyna eyed him nervously before glaring at the boys. "You better take responsibilty for this," she said as Nico continued to drink, her anxiety growing. The brothers grinned at each other before looking at her and nodding. "Yes ma'am," they said in unison, each taking one of Nico's arms and leading him off in the direction of the fire pit.

Nico groaned and shook them off, following them slowly as he continued to drink, his head becoming steadily more and more clouded. This was going to be a fun night.

Okay, something was definitely up.

Jason eyed Nico closely, furrowing his brow and losing interest in whatever was being said to him. Nico was... smiling. And not that cute, innocent, shy smile that Jason caught on Nico's face sometimes. Not the creepy we just killed a bunch of monsters let's do it again smile that gave Leo the, as he described it, freaky-deakies. It was a smile. One of pure happiness and laughter that Jason had never seen on Nico's face before.

So obviously, in Jason's reasoning, there was something seriously wrong.

Perhaps Nico had been possessed. Or maybe it wasn't Nico at all, maybe it was an imposter.

"Or maybe he's drunk off his ass."

Jason yelped and practically fell out of his chair when Rachel materialized beside him and whispered in his ear.

His frown deepened when he realized what she'd said to him.

"Drunk? Seriously? Who let him near the alcohol?"

Rachel shrugged, although Jason was completely aware of the fact that she knew exactly who'd given it to him.

"Not sure~ though you may want to keep an eye on him. Cause tonight is shaping up to be pretty spectacular."

She turned on her heels and sauntered away, hands in her back pockets. Jason blinked after her, trying to figure out what she could mean when suddenly he became aware of how incredibly quiet it was. His head snapped around and his eyes widened when he caught sight of Nico.

"Shit," he whispered.

Nico di Angelo-tortured and hurt soul, struggling with his sexuality, angry at the world Nico di Angelo-currently had his arms wrapped tightly around Percy's neck and his lips pressed to Percy's in a hard kiss.

Percy, poor soul, stood frozen. He was completely aware of Nico's crush on him because of certain, ehem, events, but Jason was well aware of the fact that he was not ready to handle being kissed by the boy in front of both of his camps. Not to mention his girlfriend.

Jason was on his feet in seconds, walking quickly and swiftly towards the cause of the scene. He wrapped his arms around Nico's waist and plucked him away from Percy in one swift movement.

"Whoops, looks like someone's drunk. Come on, Nico, let's get you sobered up."

He had to practically carry Nico over his shoulder to get him away fast enough, the boy was so far gone. He didn't speak a word, just scowled darkly as Jason led him away. Jason could see the wheels turning in Nico's brain as he tried to figure out what he'd just done. Jason swore softly, knowing this was not going to end very well.

Connor and Travis stared open mouthed at the scene in front of them, blinking stupidly.

They both winced when they heard someone clear their throat from behind them. They didn't need to turn to know who it was.

"Taking responsibilty, are you?" Reyna said dangerously.

The brothers gulped loudly.

It did not end well.

Nico, after sobering up and realizing what he'd done, had disappeared. Completely this time. Not a trace left behind.

It had been three weeks since the celebration party and Jason was starting to panic. He'd even gone down to the underworld to visit Hades a couple times to see if there was any way of finding Nico. Hades had simply said that Nico would be found when he wanted to be found. Excruciatingly not helpful, thank you Hades.

Percy was blaming himself, which was so like him. But then again, Jason had pointed out It was kind of your fault, I mean you were the one who made him fall for you and then did jack shit about it but then again I did tell you not to say anything so I guess it's both of our faults but mainly it's Travis and Connor's faults let them rest in pieces thank you Reyna.

But then again... Jason was looking for excuses.

He groaned loudly and squirmed violently on the grass where he lay, brooding. He was so sick of this. He wished Nico would just let himself be found so Jason could tell him that it was literally so normal to embarrass yourself when getting drunk the first time and being in love with a dude was equally as normal. Well, not for everyone, but for some people it was. Jason groaned again. He was going in circles.

"Guess who I found?"

Jason shouted in surprise and sat up so quickly he got a headrush and ended up falling back down. He blinked up at Rachel and scowled. "Can you not do that, please?"

Rachel just grinned and sat down on the grass beside him.

"Found Nico," she said, as if it was the most casual thing in the world. "Not to hard, when you think about it. It's actually embarrassing how easy it was in the end. I can't believe he's there, really, even though it makes sense. He's so dumb sometimes."

Jason stared at her, dumbstruck, as she continued to prattle on. "Rachel!" he shouted, getting her attention. "Where is Nico?"

Rachel grinned and handed him a piece of paper.

"Coordinants. Use them wisely~" With that she stood from the ground, brushed off her jeans, and wandered off towards the lake.

Jason was on his feet in seconds, rushing off to grab his gear. He wouldn't tell the others. He had a feeling this was something he had to do alone.

Jason flew through the musky air of the underworld, feeling incredibly drained with the effort it took to stay in the air down here. His eyes scanned the fround, looking for the demigod he seeked. His eyes widened when he spotted him and he sped towards the ground, his heart in his throat. No flipping way was he doing what Jason thought he was doing.

"Don't even think about it!" he shouted as he touched down, running towards Nico and grabbing onto his arm, yanking him away from the river and into his arms. Nico struggled to get away, pulling out of Jason's grip and glowering at him.

"How did you find me?" he hissed, stepping back towards the black river behind him. Jason's hand twitched, aching to reach out for him.

"Rachel told me," Jason said, taking a step towards the demigod. "Nico, please, come with me. Step away from the river. You don't want to do this."

Nico's laugh was haunting, piercing the air with a hysterical sharp sound. "Oh really, now? And you know what I want, is that correct? Listen here, Grace, you know fuck all about me. Do you know my birthday? My favourite colour? Do you know what I dream about? Do you know what I fear? Do you even know my sister's fucking name?"

Jason was at a loss for words. He didn't. He couldn't even remember his sister's name. He honestly knew nothing about Nico. Nothing importantly, anyways. He knew he was gay. He knew he was struggling with his sexuality and his crush on Percy. But that was... just about it.

Jason swallowed hard. "You're right," he said softly, holding his arms out in a form of surrender. "I don't know anything about you. And maybe you do want to do this. But that doesn't mean you should. Nico, I don't know what you're going through right now, but you don't have to do it alone. I don't know you, so let me get to know you. Let someone in, dude, or you'll always be alone."

Poor choice of words. Nico glared. "Fuck you, Jason Grace. This isn't going to get better just by gaining a few friends. I wasn't alone. I was perfectly fucking happy and then you people happened and my entire life got turned upside down. Not only did I lose the only person who loved me but I gained a shit ton of people who could care less about me. I was just some kid who's sister had died on a quest. I was a taboo. I was the son of Hades who couldn't keep his temper. Everyone looked at me like I was a freak."

Jason shook his head. "Nico, forgetting isn't going to make things better."

Nico laughed again and it cut Jason to the core.

"You sure about that?" he spat, his eyes like daggers.

Jason's chest ached. "Yes, you'll forget the bad memories, but you'll forget the good ones too. Believe me, Nico, if anyone know what it's like to get your whole existance ripped away from you, it's me. Gods, you have no idea how badly it will fuck you up. I have two lives in my head because of what Juno did to me. Are you really willing to give up everything? Just to start again?"

The look on Nico's face broke Jason's heart clean in two.

"What happy memories?" he asked softly, the desperation in his eyes palpable. Jason could almost reach out and touch his sorrow, scoop it into his hands and watch it swim in his palms.

"I don't have any happy memories any more, Jason. Everything that used to make me smile now makes me want to rip my heart out so I won't feel the pain any more. It's killing me slowly... I can't take it any more. I'm sorry, Jason. I just can't do this."

He closed his eyes and fell backwards. And Jason's whole world slowed down.

Nico's name ripped from his throat in a scream as he lunged towards the falling boy. His fingers wrapped around his wrist just in time to yank him to his chest, holding him close in a tight hug as they both tumbled into the river Lethe.

"I don't understand, why were they at the river in the first place?"

"Jason followed Nico there."

"But... but that's ridiculous! Nico knew what that river did, why would he go there on purpose?"

"You know perfectly well why, Percy Jackson, now stop being an idiot and use your head for once. He followed Nico there to stop him from jumping in."

"Well he did a great job of it."

"Leo!"

"What? Sorry I'm a little pissed off my best friend has lost his memory. Again!"

"Please, lord Hades sir, there must be a way to reverse this."

"Hmm, your pretty voice will do nothing to win me over, child... but there is a way."

"There is?!"

"Yes, but it is not something you will like. It is dangerous and uncontrollable. You have no idea what she will ask of you."

"She?"

"Yes. She. The goddess of memory."

The room smelled funny.

That was the first thing he thought when he opened his eyes. It was dark in the room. And cold. He didn't know where he was... he didn't know who he was. He felt panicked inside, filled with an intense sense of deja vu. Why was this familiar? This sinking feeling that nothing was as it should be.

Looking to his left he saw the face of another boy. He had pale olive skin and a forest of jet black hair surrounding his head like a halo. He reached out to touch the boy's hair but paused when he realized his hand was already clasped tightly in the other boy's grip. He looked at their connected hands and frowned. He knew this boy, of that he was sure. He didn't know who he was, but right now he was the only thing in the world that felt right.

Slowly shifting from his spot on the cold bed, making sure not to displace the hand from his, he moved so he was kneeling beside the boy. He gently shook him with his free hand.

"Hey," he whispered. "Hey, wake up... can you tell me who I am?"

The boy slowly opened his eyes and blinked into the dim lightly. They stared at each other for a long while, taking each other in before the boy spoke.

"Only if you tell me who I am."

It was then, that they both realized how very wrong this was.

"No!"

Piper was fuming, which wasn't surprising. This was ridiculous and completely typical. She glared at the straight faced goddess, grinding her teeth and trying to hold herself back from lunging at her.

"You can't do that!"

The goddess huffed and crossed her arms. "I am Mnemosyne. I can do whatever I want, child. The best part is, if I don't want you to, you won't even remember any of this!"

Piper wanted to cry she was so angry.

"I thought you were supposed to help."

Mnemosyne hummed and tapped her chin, walking back and forth in front of the crowd of children. "I will help. But nothing comes without a price, dear. I thought you would have learned this by now." She looked at Piper and grinned, her jet black eyes glinting in the fire light. "It's not much, just a small price. 5 memories each, that's all I ask. A girl's got to eat, you know."

Piper decided to ignore that last bit of information. She did not need to know that this goddess ate memories.

"But that's... 5 of their most precious memories... they can never ever get them back if you take them."

Mnemosyne huffed indignantly and rolled her eyes. "And your other option is to do nothing and wait until they get their memories back, which could take years if it happens at all. You willing to risk that, daughter of Aphrodite?"

Piper opened her mouth to argue but stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked behind her to see Percy looking at her grimly. "Piper," he whispered, "we may not have any other choice. It's not as bad as it could be, she could want all of their happy memories. She's only asking for five. Jason has loads."

"Ah yes," the goddess purred, not caring that she was not supposed to have heard the conversation. "Jason Grace. So many memories. Two lives, that's a lot to sift through. The other one, though... not nearly as many. I'd say he had... what, 12 happy memories left? Most of them he can't even remember due to him being too young. Poor thing. No wonder he jumped."

Piper winced and looked at the goddess, trying to ignore the sound of Hazel's soft attempts to hide her tears. She couldn't allow herself to get emotional. She needed to be the strong negotiator right now. She looked sharply at Hades, who had been standing quietly in the corner since the goddess had appeared. "Why didn't you do anything?" she demanded, needing someone to vent her frustration at. "You were right here! You could have stopped them! I thought you knew everything that happened in your underworld."

Hades stared at her, his anger radiating off him with such force that it almost knocked her into Percy.

"I did not believe he would actually jump," Hades said, his voice booming around the room.

Mnemosyne whistled and smirked. "Someone's grumpy."

Hades left the room with a swish of his robes, headed towards Nico's room where the two unconscious boys had been laid.

"This is getting us no where," Frank said angrily. "Why don't we just ask them?"

Piper frowned and looked over at Frank. "Ask them?"

Frank nodded and looked towards the door Hades had disappeared through. "The memories belong to them. It's not up to us. We should ask them... if they want to remember... given the price they'll have to pay."

"What price?"

All heads turned towards the small sound, the soft voice and big wondering eyes. For a split second, Piper didn't recognize him. She had never seen Nico look so... young. But she was distracted from the boy in seconds when she caught sight of the person who was holding his hand. "Jason!" she cried, unable to stop herself. They both looked at her, confused, before looking at each other.

"Which one of us is Jason?" Jason asked Nico, who shrugged.

"I'm going to guess it's you," Nico said softly. Jason frowned and tilted his head to the side. "Why do you say that?"

Nico smiled and Piper almost sobbed as loud as Hazel. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

"Because you look like a Jason."

Piper wasn't sure why Nico's smile effected her so much. It was so lighthearted, so free of any kind of angst. She had never seen Nico this way before and it was like a punch in the fact. He was just a kid. An innocent little boy. He was so... free like this.

Jason laughed and shrugged. "Alright. What's your name then?"

"Nico," Percy said, his voice breaking slightly. "Your name is Nico."

Nico looked at Percy and his smile wavered for a second-it was as if he had remembered Percy for a split second. She saw Frank put an arm around a shaking Hazel out of the corner of her eye.

"That's a strange name," Nico said, the smile back. "Is it short for something?"

Percy swallowed loudly and shrugged. "Not sure... you've never told us. You're just... Nico."

"How very cute," Mnemosyne said, drawing everyone's attention back to her. "Now boys, you have a decision to make. Here is the choice. You can get your memories back. Except 5 of each of your most precious memories will be mine and you will never get them back. Or you can wait and see if you regain your memories on your own, which you might never accomplish. However those memories will still be yours to remember. Your choice."

Jason looked down at Nico and Piper could see the silent conversation going on between the two of them.

"I guess we'll do it. I mean... 5 memories isn't many compared to getting the rest of them back now."

Mnemosyne purred softly and walked towards the two boys, everyone else parting out of the way because her cloak was far too similar to the River Lethe to be safe.

"How very brave of you. That is the right choice. At least... it definitely is for you, Jason. However, Nico, you need to know that it was you that caused the two of you to lose your memories. You jumped into the river Lethe voluntarily, seeking to forget everything about yourself. Jason was merely trying to stop you and got sucked in as well. Knowing that... do you still believe you want to remember? You could start over, be a different person with a different life and none of the extra baggage."

Nico seemed to stew over that, the wheels turning visibly in his head.

Jason looked determined as ever. "Return my memories to me," he said, extremely sure of himself. "I jumped in to save Nico, right? That means I must care about him a lot. So if you give me back my memories I can convince Nico that he deserves to have his memories."

Mnemosyne looked incredibly pleased.

"Very well, Jason Grace," she said softly, lifting her hand and placing her fingers to Jason's forehead. His eyes went wide and a brilliant white light erupted from his eyes and mouth, blinding Piper for a couple seconds. When she blinked the stars from her vision, Jason was on his hands and knees, panting and gasping for air. He looked around wildly and scrambled to his feet when he saw Nico, grabbing him by the shoulders.

"Gods you're an idiot!" he shouted. "Forgetting isn't the answer! You have to fight past the bad stuff and find new things to make you smile. If your past hurts then don't think about it until the hurt is gone. Maybe the hurt will never got away but sometimes that's a good thing. Nico, you precious, idiotic child. You're 14 years old! I don't care that you're technically 80 or something, you're 14 and you should not be acting like the world is ending because of a stupid kiss! I will not allow yourself to throw everything away just because of some teenage angst! What about your sister? What about us? What about me? Gods, Nico, you do stupid things to my brain. Hazel loves you, your sister loved you, I love you, which is stupid. I am now responsible for you and I'm not letting you do this to yourself. Let the nice lady give you back your life and let's move on... let's create new memories, happier memories because I need to see you smiling."

Piper wiped a tear from her eye and bit her lip to stop herself from crying. She had never seen something like this before. Nico looked shocked and so incredibly confused.

"I want to remember," he whispered. "With... with someone like you beside me, why would I want to forget?"

Jason let out a soft laugh, looking thoroughly deflated. Mnemosyne smiled and lifted her fingers to Nico's forehead. Piper had the common sense to close her eyes this time.

"You know you could go dance, right?"

Nico huffed and shrugged, arms crossed over his chest as he sat leaning against Jason's side. Jason chuckled and took another sip of his Kool-Aid (curtasy of Dakota).

Nico had lost 5 memories of Bianca(Jason had finally learned her name). He had many more, but he'd lost the ones that evoked the least painful emotions. Nico didn't really talk about his sister any more. It made Jason sad, but he knew that he was going to have to work on getting the remaining memories of her to not be so painful for him. He had made it his life goal to make Nico di Angelo happy.

"I don't dance, Jason."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Yeah, neither do I but you saw me out there with Piper not 5 minutes ago. Come on, man, it will be fun."

Nico looked unbelievably skeptical.

Jason grinned and stood quickly, causing Nico to slide sideways. Jason grabbed Nico's hands and pulled him to his feet, yanking him onto the center of the amphatheatre that they were using as a dance floor.

"Jason," Nico said warningly. "No, n-no, Jason, No."

Jason promptly ignored him and grabbed him around the waist, swaying him back and forth, much to the amusement of everyone watching and the embarrassment of the boy in his arms.

"Gods, you are going to be the death of me," Nico muttered, hiding his face in Jason's chest, but Jason could feel him smiling a little.

Jason grinned. "That's the plan."


	4. Brothers in Arms

The door to Jason's cabin opened with a slam and Jason was only half surprised when Nico di Angelo stormed into the room and fell face first down on Jason's bed, groaning loudly into the pillow.

Jason's lips quirked up at the corners and he flipped the page of the book he was attempting to read, laying on the couch with his head in Piper's lap. She had jumped when Nico had come in but was now staring down at Jason with an eyebrow raised.

"Jason," Nico whined into the pillow. "Save me."

Jason snickered and sat up, putting the book down on the coffee table. He looked over at Nico and smirked.

It had been 5 years since they'd defeated Gaea from waking and her forces from destroying the world. In those few short years Nico had shot up like a rocket so that now he towered over everyone at 6'3", got an undercut and actually, believe it or not, started wearing colours. He'd gotten healthier and started working out so that now he was one of the most attractive guys at camp, lucky bastard. Oh, and he'd come out to the entire camp. Jason was still the only person on the planet who was aware about his crush on Percy, though(or at least, the only person Nico knew was aware of it).

Jason was 99% sure he was over that crush. He knew Nico had been lying through his teeth about being over him when Jason had first found out, but now that he was 19 and slightly more—ahem—experienced, he had gotten over the phase. Jason, honestly, was relieved. Nico deserved happiness. And he wasn't getting it from Percy—who was busy frolicking in Camp Jupiter with his new wife and baby girl. Nico had even smiled at the wedding.

"What can I do for you, babe?" Jason asked, sitting back and stretching his arms out to his sides, resting them on the back of the couch. Piper snuggled in against his chest.

Jason and Nico's relationship was... complicated.

Leo would always be Jason's best friend, but since the gods had granted him immortality and set his equally immortal girlfriend free, Jason didn't see him much. He stopped by from time to time to catch up and to fix everything his brothers and sisters had been to 'lacking of natural talent' to fix.

Nico, however, was more like Jason's... soulmate.

They weren't soulmates as in, romantically involved. Jason was happily engaged to Piper and would never stop loving her. Nico was just... well he was that part of Jason that he'd felt like he was missing ever since he woke up on the bus with Leo and Piper after having his memory stolen.

It was common knowledge around the camp that Jason and Nico always knew where the other was, always knew how they were and what they were doing. They knew everything about each other and kept no secrets from each other. They acted like a couple and like brothers at the same time in a weird sort of relationship that would never work with any other two people.

Nico whined loudly and peeked out at the two demigods sitting together on the couch. He pouted dramatically and Jason rolled his eyes.

"You're ruining you're image, bro."

Nico huffed and sat up as Piper chuckled softly. "I'll leave you two alone," she said softly, kissing Jason's cheek gently and standing from the couch. She blew a kiss to Nico teasingly before slipping out of the cabin and closing the door behind her.

Jason stood from the couch and walked towards the bed where Nico was hiding in the pillow again. He sat down on the edge of the bed and patted Nico's head.

"There, there. What's up?"

Nico whined again and sat up slowly, leaning back against the wall with his legs crossed under him.

"I met a boy," he said softly.

Jason's eyes went wide and he grinned.

"Is he cute?" he asked loudly, his grin only widening when Nico blushed.

"Ugh, only you would ask that first," Nico scoffed, shifting uncomfortably. "And of course he's cute, even I have standards."

Jason laughed out loud and patted Nico on the shoulder. "Okay, so why do you need saving? This isn't your first rodeo show, babe."

Nico squirmed and chewed his bottom lip. Jason raised an eyebrow, growing suspicious.

"Alright, spit it out. What's wrong?"

Nico sighed loudly and ran a hand through his untidy hair. "He's... he's mortal... and he has no idea what I am."

Jason closed his eyes and sighed. "Ah," he said softly, leaning back against the wall beside Nico so their shoulders and arms touched just slightly. "Now I get it."

He looked at Nico, taking in his appearance. He looked... really concerned about this. Jason wondered just how much Nico liked this boy.

"Tell me about him," Jason said softly, smiling at the younger man.

Nico flushed and swallowed hard.

"He, uh... his name is Peter. He has brownish red hair and blue eyes. He's only an inch or two shorter than me. He's thin, but t-toned."

Jason didn't miss the stutter and the way Nico's cheeks darkened at the description.

"Nico, anyone can tell me those things. Those are facts. Tell me about him. What made you fall for him?"

Nico rubbed his forehead irritably. "I didn't fall for him," he muttered. "It's n-not like it's love or anything... I just like him. I think he's funny and smart and he has a really nice... smile."

Jason grinned and nudged Nico with his arm. "You're so smitten."

Nico rolled his eyes and huffed, nudging back. "Shut up. Do you want to hear about him or not?"

Jason mimed zipping his lips.

"He's... we met when I was on my way back from visiting Hazel. I decided to walk, for some ungodly reason, and he was just sort of... there. He was sitting on the side of the road looking so incredibly lost and yet... he was smiling. He had headphones on and he was listening to something. His eyes were closed and he looked so happy. I figured he was a weirdo. So naturally, I said hi."

Jason chuckled. That was his Nico. Since he'd started to open up and let people in, Jason had quickly discovered that Nico would befriend anyone.

"He was just really lost. He'd been hitchhiking but no one ever comes down that road any more unless they're going to Camp Jupiter. I offered to lead him to the nearest town, since I was going anyways, and we started walking together. He let me listen to his music, which was really good, and we talked about nothing in particular. It wasn't awkward, though. We spent most of the walk laughing... I realized once we got into town and he said that that was where he was going to say goodbye that I didn't want him to leave. I'd had such a good time talking to him that I asked for his number without even thinking about it. He was surprised at first but smiled and gave it to me before asking for mine in return... He called me before I could work up the courage to call him."

Jason frowned, stopping Nico's story to voice a question. "What number? You don't have a phone, dude."

Nico rolled his eyes and pulled out a old looking cell phone from his back pocket. "Annabeth made it for me," he said and Jason couldn't help but smile at the casual way he said her name. "So that I could keep in touch when I'm visiting dad. It's signal is blocked so the monsters can't sense it."

Jason whistled lowly. Nico did tend to disappear for days at a time, so he was glad he had a phone he could use. Now all he needed to do was get Annabeth to make him one.

Nico gave him a knowing look. "She says it will be here within the week," he said, smirking.

Jason grinned and nodded. "Excellent. Alright, continue." He mimed zipping his lips again.

"The first thing he said to me when I picked up was 'You're gay, right?'. It took me a couple seconds to make any sound, but I said yes and then he said 'Good, because I just wanted to make sure that when I ask you on a date in a minute that I'm not getting the wrong assumption'." Nico smiled and chuckled softly. "I sort of floundered and just said ok but he just said 'Now pretend like I didn't say any of that so you can be surprised when I ask you on a date'."

Jason chuckled. "What an interesting man," he said softly, running a hand through his hair. Nico shrugged and mirrored the action.

"Interesting... yeah, I'd call him that. He's really strange and energetic. He reminded me a little of Leo at first, actually. Except less annoying and sarcastic. And Peter is actually funny."

Jason laughed. "Wow, harsh."

Nico smiled a little and played with the end of his shirt, running his fingers over the fabric.

"So, um... basically he's all I can think about and I really... really want to be his boyfriend. And he's asked me if I wanted to be official even though we've already gone on several dates. But I don't want to... not until I tell him the truth. I can't lie to him about it... Jason, how am I supposed to tell someone that I'm actually the son of Hades, the Greek god of the underworld? He's going to think I'm crazy. Or, if I prove it to him, he's going to think I'm a monster."

Jason frowned. "You're not a monster."

Nico gave him a long suffering look. "I see dead people."

Jason rolled his eyes. Nico had a point. It would probably be pretty freaky to someone who wasn't used to it.

"Just tell him, man. What else is there to do? Just say that you really want to be with him, but you have a secret that is kind of important he keep. And then tell him. Simple as that. You're gonna have to tell him eventually. You can introduce him to me, if you want, so that he knows you're not totally wacko. Maybe, once you get together, you can convince Chiron to let him into the camp. Introduce him to everyone and make him really believe. You've gotta seriously convince him, though, or else he won't be able to see the truth through the mist."

Nico sighed loudly and nodded, letting his head fall into his hands. "Yeah, you're right," he murmured softly.

Jason grinned. "I'm always right."

Jason was planning his next sword fighting teach when the door to his cabin swung open and he suddenly had a very excited, very tall Nico di Angelo attempting to climb his way onto Jason's lap.

"Jason!" Nico practically screeched into Jason's ear once he'd finally found a comfortable spot straddling Jason's lap with Jason's carefully thought out, except not, lesson plan scattered around him on the bed where Nico had tossed it. "Jason, I have a boyfriend!"

Before Jason could respond, Piper's head poked out of the bathroom where she'd been doing her make up.

"Is he cute?" she asked, a shit-eating grin plastered on her face.

Nico blushed and attempted to retreat off Jason's lap, obviously having been unaware of her presence when he'd come in.

Jason wasn't having any of that, however, and hugged Nico tightly to stop him from squirming away.

"So you told him? And he's okay with it?"

Nico squirmed some more, uncomfortable with Piper around. No matter how many times she said she was okay with their relationship, Jason knew Nico felt like he was imposing. Yeah, their relationship was weird, but it worked.

When you jump into the River Lethe for someone, you tend to get attached.

Nico didn't say a word until Piper rolled her eyes with a disgusted noise and walked out of the cabin, closing the door behind her. Jason looked at Nico pointedly and he launched into the story.

"We were at his place and he was messing around in the kitchen and I was kind of freaking out a little, worrying about what I was going to say to him and how I was going to tell him and then I just said it... It just came out of my mouth and I couldn't stop it. I don't know why, but he just looked at me funny and laughed. I thought he assumed I was joking, but he was laughing because he... already knew."

Jason frowned and opened his mouth to say something but Nico put his finger to Jason's lips and hushed him.

"No, just listen. He laughed until he was crying and I was really embarrassed and just sat there and he looked at me and grinned and said 'I know, stupid, it's obvious'. I didn't know what part of it was obvious, but it didn't matter because he came over to me and kissed me and said that my face was like an open book. Apparently he has a cousin who's a demigod at Camp Jupiter. He knows all about the gods and stuff, even though he's mortal. He's just... Gods, Jason, he's so perfect. I thought the fact that I'm a demigod was going to totally rip us apart but it didn't, we're closer than ever now and... and now he's mine."

Nico was practically bouncing in his seat, he was so excited. Jason laughed softly and ruffled Nico's hair.

"I'm glad you're so happy, Nic. Seriously... I've been waiting to see you this happy for years."

Nico blushed a little and punched Jason lightly in the arm. "Hey, don't get all sappy on me now."

Jason just continued to smile as he pulled Nico into a tight hug and tickled him until he begged for mercy.

"So," Jason said once he'd let the son of Hades free. "When am I going to meet your new boo?"

Nico rolled his eyes as he straightened his hair and clothes which had been rumpled in the attack. "This Tuesday. He's coming to camp. It's all worked out with Chiron and Mr. D."

Jason grinned and nodded, satisfied. "Good. Now, in the mean time, I'm going to get all the kisses and cuddles out of you that I can because you're a taken man now."

He lunged at Nico, grabbing him around the waist when Nico yelped and attempted to squirm out of the way. He wiggled and laughed as Jason cuddled him and rained kisses down on him. Nico placed a hand firmly on Jason's face and pushed him back. He was laying on his back, wiggling to get away from Jason's hold around his waist. The son of Jupiter's chin was pressing painfully into Nico's rib cage and he was pouting hard behind the hand on his face.

That, of course, was when the door opened.

The two boys froze and looked at Piper who was standing in the doorway, an unimpressed look on her face. She sighed loudly and turned on her heels, walking back down the steps.

"Call me when you're done, eh lovebirds?"

Jason grinned and shouted a quick 'love you' after her before continuing his mission to annoy the living daylights out of Nico.


	5. Empire State

"You're an idiot."

Nico looked up at the tall building, his stomach in his throat. There was no way he was going up there.

"Come on, babe, it'll be fun."

Nico looked beside him at the grinning boy, sighing loudly. "You know that's Mount Olympus, right?"

Peter shrugged and poked Nico on the nose. "I know that, you've used that excuse about a million times. We're going up the mortal way. I couldn't get into Olympus even if I tried, and you know that. We're going to the top so we can see all of New York!"

Nico groaned. This was not his idea of fun. "I hate heights."

Peter merely grinned. "I know, that's why we're doing it." He grabbed Nico's hand and tugged him towards the entrance, ignoring the long whine that emitted from his boyfriend.

"Never agreeing to do anything with you ever again," Nico muttered, pouting hard as Peter pulled him into the building and towards the line for the elevator.

"Uh huh," Peter said, obviously not too convinced.

"No, really, never ever. You are never picking the date locations ever again. You only torment me."

Peter turned around to face Nico and smiled, leaning in and kissing Nico softly. Nico barely had time to squeak out that they were in public before Peter spoke.

"I love you. And we're gonna get in that elevator and go to the top and have an awesome time. And tomorrow we're going to meet your best friend. And you're gonna do all this because you love me too. And you are definitely gonna let me pick the date location again."

Nico hated that he was right.

Nico di Angelo often questioned his taste in men.

Peter Grant, a 20 year old mortal with a fetish for making Nico squirm, was Nico's first serious boyfriend. The whole mortal thing was way easier than Nico had expected. Peter had a cousin who was a demigod, which made the explanation part way less stressful.

It was rather distressing that the least stressful part of being Peter's boyfriend was being a demigod. Nico didn't know if his heart could handle everything that the red head managed to throw at him on a daily basis.

Now, standing at the edge of the camp boarder, his fingers laced with Peter's, he felt like he was on the verge of a heart attack.

"I don't know if I can do this," he hissed softly, his face already a bright red. He'd promised Jason he'd introduce him to Peter and the barrier was adjusted to let Peter in but this was too much. Nico would explode before he managed to take another step.

"Come on, you big baby," Peter said beside him, kissing his cheek softly. "It will be fine."

Nico shook his head almost violently even as Peter practically dragged him towards the camp border. He whined loudly as they passed through the gate. No going back now.

He would have turned around when he saw Jason waving at him from the bottom of the hill if it weren't for Peter's firm grip on his hand.

"Peter," he whined loudly. "Stop enjoying this so much."

Peter laughed softly as he lead Nico down the hill, a grin spread over his face. "Why can't I enjoy this?" he asked, tilting his head to the side as he looked back at Nico. "I'm about to meet my boyfriends best friend. This is a special occasion."

Nico pouted as they reached the bottom of the hill. He couldn't help the smile that broke over his face, though, when Jason threw his arms around him and hugged him close.

Nico shook him off, rubbing the back of his neck. "You're so embarrassing."

Jason turned to Peter and smiled, extending his hand. "It's nice to meet you," he said politely-freaking gentleman. "I'm Jason. I've heard a lot about you." Peter chuckled softly and took Jason's hand, shaking it.

"I've heard a lot about you too. Thanks for keeping him out of trouble long enough for him to meet me."

Jason laughed and shook his head. "It is literally impossible to keep Nico di Angelo out of trouble. He eats, sleeps and breathes trouble."

Peter smirked and shrugged. "True, but he's survived this long somehow, right?"

Nico whined and flushed red. "I am standing right here, you assholes."

Peter planted a kiss on his cheek and smiled. "Sorry, angel." His tone was both patronizing and affectionate and it pissed Nico off that he liked it so much. He huffed and turned around, storming back up the hill as he grumbled to himself about stupid attractive boys.

What happened next sent a chill up his spine.

Both men behind him whined, " Babe" at the exact same time in the same way and Nico was suddenly regretting his entire existance.

Peter and Jason looked at each other in shock and blinked before they broke into hysterical laughter.

Nico was going to commit murder.


End file.
